Best passports are from three Asian nations

A Japanese passport offers hassle-free travel to 193 countries, one more than passports from Singapore and South Korea, according to Henley & Partners, an immigration consultant. However, as travel hasn’t entirely recovered from Covid restrictions, the index simply offers a speculative look of the most important documents to have while the world recovers from the pandemic. Out of 147 nations, 79 of which do not require visas, Thailand was ranked 70th. Malaysia ranked third among its immediate neighbors with only 47 visa-required countries, behind Cambodia (93rd), Laos (95th), and Myanmar (96th) (99th). As of 2017, the survey showed that Asian passports hardly ever made the list of the top 10 most popular passports globally. As Europe’s influence has eroded more and more, Germany is currently second to South Korea.


119 nations easily accept the 50th-ranked travel documents from Russia. China ranked 69th having access to 80 countries, followed by India at 87th and Afghanistan at first with just 27 countries. Japan, Singapore, and South Korea now hold the most powerful passports as the world recovers from Covid-19, reversing the pre-pandemic rankings that were dominated by European nations. “The recuperation and reclamation of our travel freedoms, and our inherent drive to move and migrate, will take time,” Henley & Partners Chairman Christian Kaelin said in a statement. By identifying which passports offer the most visa-free or visa-on-arrival access, the index, which is based on data from 17 years, assists wealthy individuals and governments in assessing the value of citizenships around the world.